Hyderabad: Fans all over India are known to absolutely adore their favourite cricketers.
Hero-worshipping comes in various forms. An Odisha youth recently showed his admiration for Team India allrounder Hardik Pandya.
Deepak Kumar, a die-hard Hardik fan, cycled all the way from Odisha to Bengaluru, covering a distance of more than 1,500 km in 12 days, to meet his idol.
In front of the cycle was a poster with Hardik’s picture and announcing his mission to meet the cricketer. An Indian Tricolour was also fitted on his cycle.
Deepak videos, shared on his Instagram handle the_od_trekker, document his journey from Odisha to Bengaluru, where Hardik has shifted recently from Mumbai to undergo rehab at the NCA’s Centre of Excellence.
The viral videos of Deepak meeting Hardik have gone viral on social media.
He presented his favourite cricketer a shawl, idols of Lord Jagannath and framed idols of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra.
Hardik was so overwhelmed by Deepak’s gesture that he not only posed for pictures with him but gave his fan Rs 1.5 lakh to cover his expenses and also presented a pair of Virat Kohli-branded boots.
On the way back, Deepak met people who wanted to know about his experience after having seen his videos of meeting Hardik.